1,000 over-50s were asked first whether they were likely to move into a specialist retirement community, and then what factors were most important to them in deciding where to live in retirement.

If the results are taken as representative of the UK over-50s population, it would mean 4.5 million people competing for around 500,000 retirement homes.

Retirement Homesearch Managing Director, Nick Freeth, said:

“We were looking to take a snapshot of changing priorities in choosing retirement living arrangements. The expectation is that a ‘new generation’ of retirees anticipate a more active retirement, that we are increasingly seeking entertainment and healthy activity over the community-centred life that so appealed to earlier retirees.

“This isn’t exactly the picture that comes out of our results. It looks very much as though there is a problem of public perception – many say they don’t want to move to a specialist retirement community, and those who tell us that they are interested in doing so are concerned that they should live amongst some diversity.

“This suggests that the public still don’t understand the market offering. The image they have in their heads is of the old warden-controlled ‘old people’s homes’. Modern retirement living is a far cry from that.

“But overwhelmingly, the message from this survey is that, despite any image problem, there is far, far more demand for retirement living than the market can satisfy. There is good reason to believe that this will hold true and that it means a very strong future for the retirement housing market.”

The survey was undertaken in partnership with the International Longevity Centre UK (ILC-UK).

The ILC-UK’s Dr Brian Beach said:

“It would be over-simplistic to suggest that the housing crisis could be resolved just through older people downsizing to make homes available for younger households – but the retirement housing market does play a role.

“This survey confirms that demand in the UK greatly outstrips supply and gives stakeholders in this market an idea of where priorities might best be focused to serve older consumers.

“At the same time, the survey shows that there is work to do to raise awareness around retirement, as we can see persisting inaccurate stereotypes and a disconnect between what people want from retirement compared to what they are likely to need.”